The Jedi pair act more like an Old Republic Master-Padawan team in this episode than ever before, but just as Kanan is beginning to teach well, the emotions that resurfaced when Ezra visited his childhood home bring him close to the dark side. Tseebo is also a more serious character than he was in “Empire Day,” with a lot of pathos and varied voice work by Peter MacNacol. While Ezra thus far isn’t a flat character, his problems are the same problems that the many, many orphaned fictional heroes face. On the other hand, Tseebo admits his much more adult fear of being unable to raise a child. Chopper remains misanthropic. If the writers wanted viewers to worry when a crew member got hurt in the escape, he wasn’t really the one to pick. The fight scene that follows isn’t the most creative lightsaber battle Star Wars has ever seen, but the lighting, the dialogue, the choreography, the vicious attacks by both fyrnocks and the Inquisitor, and the sounds of rushing wind and falling debris create an intense, atmospheric scene. I wrote in my review of “Rise of the Old Masters” that it seemed plausible that Ezra had literally never heard of the dark side, and nothing in this episode contradicts that. His introduction to the dark side shows the excellent pacing demonstrated in the rest of the episode, with his power literally bringing a monster out of the shadows. The framing often places Ezra and Kanan directly in front of the creatures in this episode, completely different from when they stood on opposite sides of a clearing from the lothcat at the beginning of the arc. It makes the Force a primal, dangerous thing in a way that is more unique than, and just as thrilling as, seeing someone Force-choke their foe. Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter for all news updates related to the world of geek. And Google+, if that’s your thing!
